Subject to Inquiry

Subject to Inquiry

THE LATEST ON GOVERNMENT INQUIRIES AND ENFORCEMENT ACTIONS

Government Investigations and White Collar Litigation Group

Category Archives: Anti-Bribery and Corruption

Subscribe to Anti-Bribery and Corruption RSS Feed
Anti-Bribery and Corruption

SEC Comments Bring Commercial Bribery Clearly into FCPA Scope

While the potential reach of the UKBA has begun to broaden perceptions of what is necessary to ensure an anticorruption compliance program is appropriately inclusive and robust, recent comments by one senior U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) official should remind us that the FCPA's accounting provisions may serve as a vehicle for penalizing companies for acts of commercial bribery if they result in maintenance of inaccurate books and records or otherwise undermine a company's system of internal controls.… Continue Reading
Anti-Bribery and Corruption

DPAs, NPAs and the Hybrid Corporate Monitor

In two recent FCPA-related settlements in the medical devices industry in February and March 2013, and in the manufacturing industry in October 2013, DOJ adopted a "hybrid" approach to monitoring. The DPAs entered in each settlement imposed a compliance monitorship whereby the company must retain an independent monitor for an 18-month period and then self-monitor and report its compliance with the agreement for the remaining 18 months of the DPA.… Continue Reading
Anti-Bribery and Corruption, Compliance, Securities and Commodities

SEC Comments Bring Commercial Bribery Clearly into FCPA Scope

Commercial bribery is prohibited by many anticorruption laws throughout the world, including notable examples such as the UK Bribery Act (UKBA). However, the anti-bribery provisions of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) focus on official bribery, leaving commercial bribery to be pursued by U.S. law enforcement, if at all, under a variety of federal… Continue Reading
Anti-Bribery and Corruption, Compliance, Enforcement and Prosecution Policy and Trends

DPAs, NPAs and the Hybrid Corporate Monitor

In the relatively short but significant history of deferred prosecution agreements (DPAs) and non-prosecution agreements (NPAs), imposition of an independent monitor has typically been an all-or-nothing proposition. A monitor was either required for the entire term of the agreement (usually three years), or a monitor was not required at all. Recent enforcement actions, however, signal… Continue Reading
Anti-Bribery and Corruption, Enforcement and Prosecution Policy and Trends

Transparency International 2013 Corruption Perceptions Index

For anyone who perhaps naively might have thought that there may be uniformity across the single market in the European Union, they may be mistaken as Cyprus is in 31st position, Spain in 40th position, Czech Republic in 57th position (only slightly ahead of Ghana), Italy in 69th position only slightly ahead of Brazil at 72 and China at 80.… Continue Reading
Anti-Bribery and Corruption, Compliance, Election and Political Law, Enforcement and Prosecution Policy and Trends

Weatherford’s “loose controls and anaemic compliance” leads to $253 million bribery and sanctions penalties

This is a salutary tale for any companies, wherever they are situated in the world, which still think that their illegal activities will never be discovered. Usually it is only a question of time, and the penalties can be huge, as well as the impact on the business in sorting it all out.… Continue Reading
Anti-Bribery and Corruption, Compliance, Enforcement and Prosecution Policy and Trends, Financial Institution Regulation

Anticorruption compliance is more than adopting a policy

When the prosecutors come knocking on the door with a search warrant, one of the first things they will look for is evidence as to whether the company adhered to and fulfilled the six principles of adequate procedures. If one or more of those six steps is missing, the company may have no defence to a prosecution… Continue Reading
Anti-Bribery and Corruption

Brazil is the Latest Country to Change the Anticorruption Landscape

The anticorruption world is an ever-changing place these days, with an increasing number of countries enacting new or revised anticorruption regimes designed to strengthen prohibitions against bribery and other corrupt activities. This, in turn, is increasing the need for multinational companies to maintain global anticorruption compliance programs that articulate comprehensive policies and procedures responsive not just… Continue Reading
Anti-Bribery and Corruption, Securities and Commodities

Self-Reporting Leads to SEC Entering its First Non-Prosecution Agreement Regarding FCPA Violations

On April 22, 2013, the SEC announced that it had entered into a non-prosecution agreement (NPA) with Ralph Lauren Corporation (RLC), allowing RLC to avoid prosecution for violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). This is the first NPA the SEC has entered involving FCPA violations. From 2005 to 2009, RLC’s Argentine subsidiary paid… Continue Reading
Anti-Bribery and Corruption

Defamation Claims Increase Costs of Cooperation with Government Investigations

Disclosing the results of a company’s internal investigation to government investigators is always fraught with potential problems. The most obvious is the danger of waiving attorney-client privilege and work product protections that would otherwise shield the internal investigation from discovery in parallel litigation. But another less-heralded danger is the risk of defamation claims by employees identified… Continue Reading

We use cookies to enhance your experience of our website. By continuing to use this website, you agree to the use of these cookies. For more information and to learn how you can change your cookie settings, please see our policy.

Agree